


Unification

by BeignetBenny



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Historical Hetalia, M/M, Unification
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-23
Updated: 2016-10-23
Packaged: 2018-08-24 04:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8358148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeignetBenny/pseuds/BeignetBenny
Summary: The Beilschmidt house only ever smelled like burnt coffee beans and apple-cinnamon on October 3rd.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So, I haven't really posted to much Hetalia on this website, and only really still write it when I need a break from other fandoms. But, is PruAus not a thing on this website? It was huge on FF.Net I feel like a grandma with my old ships. Also this is twenty days late but that's okay

The Beilschmidt house only ever smelled like burnt coffee beans and apple-cinnamon on October 3rd. Two extra pairs of feet stuck around the night before, which just meant it was that dirtier than usual. Blankets had been neatly folded, but not put away. Still stacking up with an assortment of pillows on the coffee table in front of the couch. A sign that whoever stayed on the couch will most likely stay another night. October third was always tense. But, there was always burnt coffee and apple-cinnamon.

It was the day Germany was born again, and the day Prussia died.

He remembered signing the papers and seeing his older brother almost immediately grow weaker. It wasn’t as if his eyes weren’t already sunken in. His hair had already changed from a platinum blond to an ashy gray before the second war even started. It was that the light in his dark red eyes faded. It was that, ever since then, Gilbert didn’t have a real home. It was that he had spent his entire existence building up Germany. Going all the way to taking the place of Eastern Germany so Ludwig wouldn’t need to be torn in two and start from the beginning. Only to get the short end of the stick in return. Then again, that’s how it always was.

Ludwig slowly made his way into the kitchen. The granite pristine and the windows open, airing out the burning smell. If he wasn’t so sure, he’d assume the two had successfully made breakfast together.

“Apfelstrudel?” Ludwig questioned, pulling a chair to the kitchen island, where the other two countries sat next to each other, sipping on their respective coffees. 

“He doesn’t know how to bake anything else.” Gilbert supplied. 

“I know how to bake  _ everything _ else,” Roderich bit back. “It’s just all you had the supplies for.”

“It’s Ludwig’s birthday and you make something that’s Austrian?”

“Austro-Hungarian. It was his at one point, too.” He responded with a shrug. “Is Feliciano still here?”

“Sleeping.” Ludwig answered, grabbing a fork and taking a bite. The buttery crust made his mouth water. “He has a flight back to Venice in five hours.”

“It’s the last day of Oktoberfest, everybody will be at the airport. He should leave a little earlier.”

Ludwig raised an eyebrow. “You don’t trust him here?”

“It’s been twenty-six years since you re-unified. You’re still a child compared to nations like him,” Roderich hummed. “To most nations.”

“I don’t believe I’m seeing your point.”

“Ulterior motives?”

“Italy?” Gilbert cut in. “We are talking about Feli, right? He wouldn’t do anything. Hell, I don’t think he could.”

“He’s too busy with other things.”

“Oh, I forgot. Fashion Week is coming up.” Roderich said with an eye roll. “So nothing else must be happening.”

“Why do you always act like this?” Ludwig asked over his cup of coffee. “You treat him bad for the weeks coming up to the 3rd, then you just act like nothing even happened.”

“Because he could leave, and we couldn’t.”

“Who could leave?” The three germanic nations turned to see Feliciano walking out of Germany’s bedroom. He wore one of Germany’s black tank tops and a pair of red boxers.

“You.” Austria offered. “The airports are packed around this time. You should head out before your boss notices your absence.”

“He won’t care. Lovino is there too.” Feli said as he pulled up a seat next to Ludwig. “That’s not what this is about. You were fighting last night, is that it? There were other things I heard too, but that doesn’t really matter, does it?”

“He’s talking about the war.” Ludwig cut in, letting Feli lean closer into him.

“I’m not talking about the war. I’m talking about the unification.” Roderich’s voice cracked. He forced himself to look down at the apfelstrudel in front of him. Gilbert’s hand hovered over Roderich’s shoulder, but didn’t touch.

“You’re acting like our father.” Ludwig commented.

“It’s not like you remember your father,” Roderich bit back. “I’m the closest thing you have.”

“Just let Rodi be angry,” Gilbert said, sparing a glance at Ludwig and Feliciano across the table. “It’ll fade soon enough.”

“Word choice.” Roderich hummed. Suddenly everything began to make sense.

“You don’t think you’ll make it another year, do you?” Ludwig asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

Gilbert shrugged. “I cut my finger months ago and it has yet to heal. That’s never happened before. Hell, I fell once and was pretty sure I broke my hip.” He was joking. An attempt to lighten the mood as he poured more coffee for himself and took some of Roderich’s food off of his plate. 

“No,” Feli said, shaking his head. “No, I’ve been around fading countries before. We all have. It’s almost been a century since they signed it. You would have been long dead by now, so you can’t die. People still consider themselves Prussian. That keeps you alive. Plus, there’s a mall called Prussia too. Even people thinking about that helps. Rome is still around, albeit weak, because of people like that. And-” He was babbling, all there germans knew that. It was nice that he was trying to help, but they all knew it.

“You can go.” Ludwig said, leaning away from Feliciano. 

“But I don’t want to.” He shook his head. “I can help. I was the one who convinced the allies to let Gilbert take East Germany.”

“This is more of a family thing,” He answered. “Roderich should go too.”

Roderich nodded solemnly. “Understood,” He stood up, and dusted the crumbs off his lap. “Feliciano, do you need help with packing.”

He hesitated, looking back and forth from Ludwig, to Gilbert, to Roderich. “Yes,” Feliciano finally said, standing up as well. “I should be heading to the airport soon anyway.”

Once the two were out of earshot, Ludwig sat his coffee to the side. “Why the hell did you tell him first?”

“Well, if I had been fucking you for the last eighty years, it might have slipped out too.” Gilbert said with a shrug.

“I could have helped. Given up some of my land for you to be a state again. Something.”

“It wouldn’t have made a difference, Ludi,” Gilbert sighed. “My death certificate was signed when the allies dissolved me. I shouldn’t have made it this long. Feli said so himself.”

“So why now? What makes you so certain you won’t make it another year?”

“You don’t need me anymore. Neither does Roderich.” He picked up his coffee, and chugged the rest of it down. Having it gone cold long ago. “Sorry for ruining your birthday, little brother. Happy twenty-sixth birthday.” 


End file.
